Laws Of Fashion

AN institute to teach and preserve fashion law will be launched this September in New York. The Institute of Fashion Law has been set up by Fordham University Law professor Susan Scafidi in partnership with the CFDA, to provide help and support to designers in need of legal aid - covering subjects such as copyright, employee and sustainability issues.

"No one wants to turn a designer into a lawyer," Scafidi told the New York Magazine. "However, it's so useful for anyone running a business to have some sense of what the legal aspects of that business are. And that certainly includes designers. When they set up shop, they need to know at least the point at which they need to call a lawyer, or they at least need to know what to avoid [in order] to avoid having to call a lawyer. At this point, that's just not being provided to them. Nor do they have any centralised place to turn when they need assistance."

The new centre will offer classes and seminars to training lawyers and pro bono legal advice for designers who can't afford the typical fees. Scafidi hopes her new venture will become a recognisable arena of law.

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"I want to see that field of law [fashion law] established so that it becomes a standard part of the legal repertoire," she said. "I want to educate an entire generation of lawyers. And I want to make sure that the fashion-design community has a place to go to educate itself, and to be sure it's getting the right advice when it comes to legal issues. So! Three tiny little goals to achieve in the next year."